Are physical books merely old media in need of an update?What characterizes the electronic reading experience versus the reading of print? How significant are the differences?As our reading media change, how will our reading and writing methods change? What effects might this have on our literature and our interactions with information overall?A provocative casebook for our digital times, The Flickering Page is designed to jumpstart in-depth dialogue about the historical, cultural, civic, and scientific implications of a mass shift in reading methods. Originating in M. Allen Cunningham's ongoing work with the Oregon Humanities Conversation Project, arrestingly illustrated by artist Nathan Shields, this small volume weaves together some of the most cogent thought of the past fifty years, urging readers to consider anew -- and pose for themselves -- the many questions about our technological revolution that remain far from settled.

the contents:

-a preface: Five Characteristics of an "E-book World"-chapter 1: The Technology of Individualism: How Print Helped Shape the Renaissance Guide: Marshall McLuhan, author of Understanding Media and The Gutenberg Galaxy-chapter 2: Technology & Ideology: Why Our Tools Are Never Neutral Guide: Neil Postman, author of Amusing Ourselves to Death and Technopoly-chapter 3: Neuroplasticity: What Do a Story from Ancient Greece and Decades of Brain Research Have in Common? Guides: Socrates; Nicholas Carr, author of The Shallows-appendix: some more key questions about e-books; more for reflection and discussion